By Rebecca Caleb Maina
The Civil Society Scaling-Up Nutrition in Nigeria (CS-SUNN), with support from the Partnership for Improving Nigeria Nutrition Systems (PINNS 3.0), has commenced a three-day capacity-building workshop aimed at strengthening the Bauchi State Committee on Food and Nutrition (SCFN).
In Bauchi State, CS-SUNN observes that the nutrition coordination system particularly the SCFN requires reinvigoration and restructuring to deliver more effective nutrition outcomes.
Challenges such as weak coordination mechanisms, unclear role definitions among line Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), and occasional internal misunderstandings have hindered the state’s ability to respond effectively to the malnutrition crisis.
To address these gaps, CS-SUNN, under the PINNS 3.0 initiative, is facilitating a strategic engagement designed to identify and close coordination gaps, align the SCFN’s structure with national guidelines, and foster improved collaboration and accountability among stakeholders.
This effort is part of a broader drive to strengthen nutrition governance across PINNS-supported states by replicating proven inter-agency coordination models from previous phases of the project.
Declaring the workshop open, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Jibrin Mohammed Yusuf, acknowledged that malnutrition indices in Bauchi remain poor but reaffirmed the government’s resolve to address the challenge.
He announced the release of ₦100 million as counterpart funding to UNICEF under the Child Nutrition Fund Basket, with local government areas also committing resources to support ongoing nutrition interventions.
According to Yusuf, the state is supporting Community-based Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) sites, the provision of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF), and the promotion of school and home gardening programmes as part of its multi-sectoral approach to tackling malnutrition.
He also highlighted that Bauchi was the first state to express interest in the IRIN 2.0 programme, which now includes the state in its implementation scope.
The IRIN 2.0 programme he said cuts across the health, agriculture, coordination, and management sectors reflecting the state’s proactive approach to integrated nutrition systems.
Speaking on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Mr. Likuna Julius emphasised that the workshop aims to strengthen the coordination capacity of the ministry and equip nutrition desk officers with the human and material resources necessary for effective planning and implementation.
He stressed the need for adequate budgetary allocation and timely release of funds to nutrition programmes, adding that accountability and efficiency are central to achieving nutrition targets.
Mr. Julius introduced participants to the National Policy on Food and Nutrition and the National Coordination Structure. He also traced the evolution of the National Multisectoral Platform for Food and Nutrition (NMPFAN), noting that it was originally domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology in 1990, moved to the Ministry of Health in 1993, and later to the National Planning Commission in 1994 following a Federal Executive Council resolution to place it under a neutral, non-sectoral coordinating body.
The workshop, holding from 22nd to 24th July 2025 in Bauchi, is expected to produce a strengthened and restructured SCFN with clearly defined roles, enhanced collaboration, and full onboarding onto the NSCFN Performance Management System (PMS) platform a step towards ensuring more coordinated and impactful nutrition outcomes for the state.